The Russian mission in the Minsk trilateral contact group left the session hall, as the Ukrainian side brought up the issue of release of the detained Ukrainian sailors. Iryna Gerashchenko, the Ukrainian MP posted that on Facebook.
'Today, during the video conference, the Russian representatives once again rose from their chairs and left the room, when our representative brought up the topic of the release of the captured sailors and OSCE SMM presence in Azov', reads the message by Gerashchenko.
Earlier, the Russian court ruled to keep the arrested Ukrainian sailors in detention, extending the period.
As we reported earlier, the Russian Navy attacked the Ukrainian vessels in the Kerch Strait in the Sea of Azov. The vessels were damaged, and the crews captured by the Russian special services. Ukraine and the Western governments consider the attack an act of aggression. The Ukrainian sailors were taken to a remand center in Crimea, and then in Moscow, charged with the 'illegal crossing of the Russian territorial waters'. All sailors deny their guilt, claiming they are prisoners of war.
